NQ magazine, March 2014

MARCH 2014

THE VOICE OF ALL NQs Contact us

email: graham@pqaccountant.com twitter: @pqmagazine facebook: pqmag.com call: 020 7216 6444

P14 GETTING AN INSOLVENCY QUALIFICATION the letters matter

ALL THE NEWS YOU NEED Pages 4 and 7

DIARY OF AN ACCOUNTANCY ENTREPRENEUR Page 22

SALARY CHECKER ARE YOU GETTING PAID WHAT YOU SHOULD BE?

P12

P18 MANAGING STRESS Keep healthy in mind and body

P10 CIMA BEHIND GLOBAL LAUNCH Leading accountancy bodies launch international consultation on new management accounting framework Page 8

ACHIEVING TECH NIRVANA Why you should embrace technological advances

SUITABILITY AT WAlkeR DenDle We hAve mAny DiFFeRenT AbiliTieS. The SUiTAbiliTy OF OUR JObS SeTS US APART. Walker Dendle Financial Recruitment has become established as a leading recruiter of professional permanent and temporary finance staff in Surrey and the surrounding area for over 12 years, filling a diverse range of part qualified finance and accounting roles across financial and management accountants to commercial accounting and analysis to finance business partnering.

We continually focus on adapting and refining our service to suit you, offering sound and knowledge based careers advice to part qualifieds seeking their next, all-important job move.

For more information about the range of career openings available though Walker Dendle Financial Recruitment, please contact: Permanent Division perms@walkerdendle.co.uk Temporary & Contract Division temps@walkerdendle.co.uk Walker Dendle Financial Recruitment Swan House, 51 High Street, Kingston Surrey KT1 1LQ

020 8408 9999 www.walkerdendle.co.uk

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COMMENT NUMBER CRUNCHING

$40 billion EDITOR’S COMMENTS Mad March hares Spring is most definitely in the air. The economy is picking up and the sun has started to shine. Things are getting better all the time! In this issue of NQ magazine you will pick up on this more positive vibe. For example, we discover that new accountancy firm openings are finally outstripping closures. The Big 4 are also going for growth, too.

Your latest NQ magazine has everything you need to know about what you are now worth, courtesy of the Reed Accountancy and Finance Salary Guide. It reveals that in central London NQs are earning between £45,000 and £60,0000 in business services. Meanwhile, in Northern Ireland, NQs are being paid between £27,000 and £38,000. There’s loads more great stuff on page 12. Reed’s guide discovered that 74% of qualified accountants like what they do (they call it ‘satisfied’). However, that doesn’t mean you don’t feel stressed, and a CABA report has more insight into this on page 18.

Entrepreneurship is something you have asked us to feature, and we have a great piece on ‘angel investment’ this time around. But we believe there is nothing like the real thing, so we have decided to accompany Heather Miller who is ‘going it alone’ and has just launched AbleTax Compliance Services. A previous guest editor of PQ magazine, Heather is CIOT qualified and one month in has some clear ‘do’s and don’ts’ already.

Technology is also a big part of everyone’s lives now. How this technology is transforming the finance function is fragmented, and we discover that finance has not reach a ‘tech nirvana’. The worry must be when we get to this nirvana will there be as much room for accountants – will the computers be doing your job? The answer, of course, is yes, but the numbers are meaningless unless they can be given insight. And that is where you come in. You may be more integrated into other business operations but you will still be there. Graham Hambly, Editor (graham@pqaccountant.com)

the implied value of Twitter when shares traded at $73.30 in December P16

4,500

the number of new accountancy firms opening in 2012 P4

63%

of accountants are ‘pleased’ to be working in the profession P18

£11.5 billion combined income of the UK’s 75 largest accountancy firms in 2013 P7

177

countries to be consulted about the CIMA/AICPA proposal P8

NEWS

Positive signs in the market New accountancy firm openings are finally outstripping closures, suggesting the sector is bouncing back from the recession, according to Bloomsbury Professional.

The number of new accountancy firms opening in 2012 increased by 9% to 4,500, while some 3,700 firms closed in the same year – a net gain of 800 firms.

Compared to 2010, the low point for the creation of new accountancy firms, there has been a 30% increase in the number of accountancy firm ‘births’.

Bloomsbury Professional's Martin Casimir explained that accountancy firms were hit hard during the recession and even now the number of closures is still high. This suggests that profitability is still a big issue, with the continued downward pressure on fees and competition.

He also felt demand for accountants may be recovering as a result of HMRC’s well-publicised campaigns highlighting its tougher stance on tax returns and tax evasion.

Casimir explained: “Sole practitioners or small businesses who may have once filled out their returns

themselves are aware that the penalties for failing to submit forms on time or incorrectly could cost them heavily, and are now choosing to pay for the services of an accountant to avoid being caught out by the revenue.”

It shouldn't make you feel better, but law firms are still faring badly as a result of the recession and cuts in legal aid.

The number of new law firms opening was up by just 3% to 2,425 in 2012, while the number closing jumped 22% from 1,775 to 2,170.

Finance’s technology failure The finance function is failing to fully exploit technology, says a new report from the ACCA. The report, ‘Is finance function technology delivering on its promise?’, found people working in finance are struggling to understand the often complex and fragmented technological landscape.

The ACCA’s Jamie Lyon commented: “The problem is not necessarily that technology isn’t available, but there are many reasons why finance has not yet reached ‘tech nirvana’.”

He said that when it comes to behaviours, vision and culture, the finance function must be ready to go that step further and really push for technological change.

CFOs then need to become the champions of transformative technology and predictive capability tools to support decision making in the business. See page 10

Overweight and stressed Stressed and overweight is how many ICAEW members feel going into 2014, according to the CABA’s second annual Wellbeing Survey. The report provides a unique insight into the work and personal lives of chartered accountants.

On the positive side, some 63% of those surveyed are either ‘extremely happy’ or ‘happy’ in their careers. Just 18% said they were unhappy.

However, one in three (32%) of respondents felt stressed in their day-to- day life, and a worryingly 15% have had to take time off work due to stress.

CABA said that stress is strongly evident in the profession and is often deflected as ‘just a part of the job’ fostering a perception it is a sign of weakness. But the problem is very real and some 7% of the sample admitted they have been signed off with work-related stress.

Physical health issues for accountants centre on weight and the lack of exercise. The long-hours culture often means something has to give, and this normally means a visit to the gym or other form of exercise. See page 18 for more.

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NQ Magazine March 2013

Executive recruitment specialists

Time for your next step

At Reed Finance, over a quarter of our roles are ideal for newly qualified accountants.

To discuss your next step, Ă„nd your nearest branch here.

Stay in touch with us: @ReedFinanceJobs For all the latest jobs where you are @ReedFinance For all our latest Finance news Reed Finance For news, views, jobs and discussion

reedglobal.com/finance

BE WHO YOU WANT TO BE IN BUSINESS We won’t judge you.

Choose your industry ACCOUNTING

Choose to study full-time, part-time or online PART-TIME

Choose your career llevell

CHANGING INDUSTRIES

The LSBF course selector tool will help you choose from over 200 executive education courses covering finance, marketing, business and more.

Use course selector at:

LSBF.org.uk/you

Plus professional qualifications including ACCA, CIMA, CFA® and CIM.

#isThisYou

NEWS

The Big 4 get bigger The combined income of the UK’s 75 largest accountancy firms increased by more than 4% in 2013 to reach nearly £11.5bn, according to Accountancy magazine While the UK sector as a whole continue to grow its income average profits among the 75 increased by just 1%, with staff numbers rising by 4%.

Some three-quarters of the sectors fee income is earned by the Big 4 – PwC, Deloitte, EY and KPMG. Together they brought in more than £8.7bn of all the fee income in 2013, up £352m of the previous year.

In the UK, PwC kept its number-one position ahead of the field with a reported fee income of £2.69bn, up 3% on 2012.

All four firms increased their fee income, but the profitability story is different. KPMG outstripped its competitors by producing a 27% increase, driven by a series of job cuts and restructuring across the firm. It was a different story at Deloitte, where profitability fell 22%. PwC and EY recorded more modest increases of 2% and 3% respectively.

Accountancy’s Sara White said: “The Big 4 are taking different approaches to managing their businesses. EY, in particular, has focused on hiring more professional staff in the coming year and was the only firm among the Big 4 to increase staff levels last year.”

Word up!

Lancaster accountant Mark Ellis is celebrating the success of his new App – ‘Accounting Dictionary’, which has received over 30,000 downloads in its first six months of launch. And although you are now an NQ it may be wise to use his app for back-up!

The app has been developed on the back of the success of Ellis’s website www.accountingdictionary.org and has a free version – so you would be mad not to have it on your phone.

He explains the rationale: “I set out to create an accessible collection of accountancy terms and abbreviations to assist students, accountants and finance staff, together with business owners trying to understand what accountants are talking about or indeed anyone with an interest in finance.”

Ellis believes that benefits of the Accounting Dictionary App are numerous. It contains a continually expanding collection of over 4,400 accountancy terms, abbreviations and definitions. As well as related entries there is an in-built search facility, a list of most popular terms and recently added terms. The App works both online and offline, which means that once downloaded an internet connection is not necessary.

The Accounting Dictionary App is available on both THE TOP 5 MOST Android and iPhone platforms. POPULAR TERMS There is a free Lite version, 1) Depreciable amount which is fully functional and 2) Input cost includes discreet advertising, 3) Participating interest or users can choose the Pro 4) Limiting factor version, which is the price of a 5) Gross loss cappuccino and is advert-free.

NQ Magazine March 2014

PwC

Deloitte

KPMG

EY

Fee income

£2,689m

£2,515m

£1,814m

£1,721m

Profit

£740m

£609m

£455m

£368m

£705,000

£838,000

£713,000

Not provided

16,580

14,529

10,752

13,688

Partner remuneration Staff

Dear Prudence The Financial Report Council believes the concepts of prudence, stewardship and reliability should be reintroduced to the international accounting standards Conceptual Framework, as they are fundamental to financial reporting.

The FRC comments are made in response to the IASB’s discussion paper on its conceptual framework, which sets out the concepts that underlie the preparation and presentation of financial statements.

Melanie McLaren, of the FRC, said it welcomed the emphasis placed on the importance of the profit and loss account as well as the balance sheet - the recognition that financial reporting should not be based entirely on market values.

That said the FRC feels that the IASB made changes (in 2010) that downplayed the ideas of prudence, stewardship/ accountability and reliability. It has now said that it will reconsider this in the light of work on the rest of the conceptual framework.

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MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING

PLAN FOR NEW GLOBAL ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES LAUNCHED – CIMA LEADS WAY Two leading accountancy bodies launch international consultation on new management accounting framework

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IMA and the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) have proposed a comprehensive framework to bring consistency to management accounting practices around the world and to help organisations make smarter, faster decisions for the long-term in a complex global economy.

The draft framework, entitled ‘Global Management Accounting Principles: Driving better business through improved performance’, is out for consultation, with feedback sought from businesses and institutions across the world.

CIMA chief executive Charles Tilley (below) said: “We may be seeing encouraging signs in the global economy, but we cannot afford to be complacent. We must learn the lessons of the last six years. To be confident of a successful future over the long-term, organisations must adopt a robust management accounting system that encompasses their financial reporting. This in turn will provide investors, customers and the general public with a greater confidence.”

“Management accountants have the ability and judgement to make objective, ethical decisions that consider the public interest. But the quality of management accounting remains varied. Our Principles will enable organisations to leverage both financial and, importantly, non-financial data. They will provide the forward-looking focus and link different parts of an organisation in a way that many still lack.

“We are asking businesses and other relevant organisations across the globe to tell us how our draft framework can best meet their fast-changing needs. By working together, we can contribute to a comprehensive system fit for our era of uncertainty that will, put simply, make business better.”

The consultation will reach across CIMA and the AICPA’s network of 177 countries. A series of national

and international events is planned, including local employer roundtables and meetings with leading business thinkers from all sectors and regions.

Significantly, the draft principles have already attracted considerable support from within the business community. Ian Powell, Chairman and Senior Partner of PwC UK, said: “Management accounting and financial accounting are natural bedfellows which demand global standards. We welcome the plan for the development of a new management accountancy framework, and will encourage our clients across the world to contribute to and adopt it.”

Professor Mervyn King, Chairman of the International Integrated Reporting Council, said: “I am pleased to see a framework that provides disciplined management accounting practices and ensures that reporting is fit for the 21st century. In an era of a gradual return to economic growth, integrated thinking is essential for sustainable value creation. The ability to use information effectively will be a crucial part of sustainable growth and ensuring the business models of organisations and their outputs have positive impacts financially, socially and environmentally.”

And Chandan Khaitan, previously Regional Controller – West India at Nestle India, said: “In today’s VUCA world, standardised management accounting practices are required more than ever. It is encouraging to see CIMA and the AICPA making this important contribution.”

NQ

● The consultation will close on 10 May 2014. To learn more visit http://www. cimaglobal.com/principles

NQ 8

NQ Magazine January 2014

JIEB and CPI TRAINING

THE CPI AND JIEB INSOLVENCY TRAINING TEAM - DELIVERING WHAT YOU DESERVE IMAGINITIVE, PRACTICAL, EXAM-FOCUSED MATERIALS COMPREHENSIVE INDIVIDUAL FEEDBACK ON SCRIPTS AND MOCK EXAMS INSPIRATIONAL COURSES IN FANTASTIC LOCATIONS DAILY TESTS AND PRACTICAL EXERCISES 21ST CENTURY TOTAL CLIENT CARE AND SUPPORT BESPOKE PRACTICAL COURSES FOR PRACTICAL EXAMS …..TO BE INSPIRED.

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TECHNOLOGY

Achieving tech nirvana

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echnology continues to rapidly shape the way we live our lives, but our enthusiasm for tablets, smart phones and other devices doesn’t necessarily extend into the work place – yet.

A recent ACCA study, called ‘Is finance function technology delivering on its promise?’, suggests that the finance function is not necessarily gaining all the benefits it could from greater technology adoption.

With all the talk about the finance function driving insights and decision making for the organisation, one of the barriers to fulfilling this ambition is technology adoption. This should be a priority that not only finance 10

leaders of today need to tackle, but that tomorrow’s finance chiefs need to understand too.

The problem is not necessarily that the technology isn’t available.

The ACCA Futures report ‘Digital Darwinism: thriving in the face of technology change’ points to 10 technologies, including big data and even artificial intelligence, that finance professionals could be using to bring more value to their organisations and to develop the profession’s role.

Concepts such as self-service finance, or eliminating the need for people in transactional finance processes through greater technology deployment, have yet to gain significant

ground across the finance function.

So why, despite these advances, has the finance community not yet reached tech nirvana? Undoubtedly, the technology is still complex and fragmented for finance professionals.

Currently, the accountant’s technological landscape is littered with multiple ERP, continuing work-arounds and bolt-on applications.

However, our latest report, in which we spoke to finance executives across a spectrum of businesses, including Shell, Aviva, Kimberly-Clark, Deloitte, Accenture and others, revealed that there might be more to it than just complexity.

It could be that behaviours, NQ Magazine March 2014

TECHNOLOGY

Jamie Lyon explains how by embracing technological advances finance professionals can put themselves at the core of the business

vision and culture is holding back technological change in finance.

From a business and profit viewpoint, harnessing technologies that, for example, mine data for patterns means the function can become a game changer for business. Finance leaders have tended to rely on their technology colleagues rather than members of their own teams to plan their technology ‘roadmaps’, but with the emergence of big data and other advancements, it can make more sense for the finance function to bring those innovations closer to home.

We should also acknowledge that the application of technology has the potential to change further what a NQ Magazine March 2014

finance career means. If technology increasingly automates transactional finance, and is also able to mine insights at the same time, it will change what it means to be a finance professional, as well as the capabilities needed. That insight gives CFOs the key to internal influence and potential to raise the reputation of the finance department.

The advent of new social and mobile tools in finance service delivery could also enable the function to develop a different relationship with the business, and change the way finance and its people operate and communicate. It may help finance integrate better into future business operations, and it will

almost certainly affect the careers of tomorrow’s finance professionals.

Change is unlikely to happen overnight, especially when there is some hesitation among finance leaders to fully embrace technology.

Perhaps emerging technology will, nonetheless, begin to prompt some fundamental questions about the role of the finance function within the organisation. Technology should be seen as an opportunity for the finance NQ organisation, not a threat.

● Jamie Lyon is head of corporate sector at ACCA 11

SALARY SURVEY

THE ULTIMATE What are you worth as an NQ? There is only one place to find out – the Reed Accountancy & Finance Salary Guide & Market Insight 2014 If you want to look ahead and see what a director of finance or financial controller is earning in your sector then the Reed Accountancy & Finance Salary Guide has it all, and it is just a click away

SOUTH WEST Business services £26,000 - £41,000 Financial services £28,000 - £51,000 Technology & communications £28,000 - £44,000 Retail & leisure £26,000 - £41,000 Public sector £24,000 - £40,000

CENTRAL LONDON Business services £45,000 - £60,000 Financial services £48,000 - £71,000 Technology & communications £48,000 - £64,000 Retail & leisure £45,000 - £59,000 Public sector £24,000 - £40,000

HOME COUNTIES Business services £34,000 - £43,000 Financial services £37,000-£53,000 Technology & communications £37,000 - £46,000 Retail & leisure £34,000 - £43,000 Public sector £31,000 - £42,000

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SCOTLAND Business services £27,000 - £40,000 Financial services £32,000 - £50,000 Technology & communications £32,000 - £42,000 Retail & leisure £30,000 - £39,000 Public sector £27,000 - £39,000

WALES Business services £27,000 - £40,000 Financial services £30,000 - £50,000 Technology & communications £29,000 - £43,000 Retail & leisure £27,000 - £40,000 Public sector £25,000 - £39,000

MIDLANDS Business services £30,000 - £40,000 Financial services £32,000 - £47,000 Technology & communications £32,000 - £39,000 Retail & leisure £30,000 - £37,000 Public sector £27,000 - £36,000

NQ Magazine March 2014

SALARY SURVEY

SALARY GUIDE NORTH EAST Business servicess £27,000 - £36,000 Financial services £30,000 - £42,000 Technology & communications £29,000 - £36,000 Retail & leisure £27,000 - £33,000 Public Sector £25,000 - £34,000

NORTH WEST Business services £32,000 - £40,000 Financial services £34,000 - £50,000 Technology & communications £34,000 - £42,000 Retail & leisure £32,000 - £40,000 Public sector £29,000 - £39,000

SOUTH EAST Business services £36,000 - £43,000 Financial services £39,000 - £53,000 Technology & communications £38,000 - £45,000 Retail & leisure £36,000 - £42,000 Public sector £32,000 - £41,000

EAST ANGLIA Business services £32,000 - £39,000 Financial services £35,000 - £49,000 Technology & communications £35,000 - £42,000 Retail & leisure £32,000 - £39,000 Public Sector £29,000 - £38,000

BACK TO NORMAL? If you want to know what the coming year holds for your career, then there is only one port of call for you – the Reed Accountancy & Finance guide for 2014 ● The market is ‘getting back to normal’ is the key message from the Reed Accountancy & Finance Salary Guide and Market Insight 2014. The report says that the market for both PQs and senior (qualified) finance professionals now looks set to return to prerecession levels. We are talking both in terms of job opportunities and remuneration here. ● Reed explains that the second half of 2013 showed a real shift in attitude from businesses. Everything became much more positive in the world! That means pay levels are on the up, as are overall reward packages. ● Job satisfaction among finance staff is very high, with 74% of fully qualified professionals feeling satisfied or very satisfied.

NORTHERN IRELAND Business services £27,000-£39,000 Financial services £32,000-£49,000 Technology & communications £31,000 - £42,000 Retail & leisure £29,000 - £39,000 Public sector £27,000 -£38,000

NQ Magazine March 2014

● Looking forward, Reed said that it expected to see most growth and new opportunities in the sectors that were hardest hit by the recession and had made significant redundancies. ● Overall, the outlook for 2014 looks good for business, says the report. There are, however, some shortages evident in several niche areas.

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YOUR CAREER

Insolvency: get the right letters

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Neil Taylor explains the various insolvency qualifications available to newly qualified accountants

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escribing qualifications often means swimming your way through a sea of acronyms.

The extra ‘C’ in ‘ACCA’ means the world to many, whereas the addition of the same letter to the passport description of a rap singer would mortify them!

So here are a couple more to test your patience when considering the next stage of your career – ‘JIEB’ and ‘CPI’. JIEB stands for the Joint Insolvency Examinations Board and CPI for the Certificate of Proficiency in Insolvency. I am aware that I am not selling this to you, but wait. How does a highly practical world of business rescue, restructuring complex organisations, saving jobs and investigating the dodgy transactions of nefarious directors grab you?

R3 (less an acronym than an educational objective), one of two lead authorising and training bodies in UK insolvency, states that “insolvency is possibly the most demanding career option a professional can undertake. It is certainly one of the most challenging.” Now there’s a gauntlet hurled in your direction.

They go on to say that “the work of the insolvency practitioner affects the lives, prospects and livelihoods of both creditors and debtors. Insolvency work is as much about people as it is about figures.”

I have been involved in the training and amelioration of accounting and financial professionals since just after Agincourt, and understand the light and shade of the various corners of the wider profession. Insolvency seems, to me, to be more of a vocation than most, requiring its protagonists to have personal and interpersonal skills, a

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wide range of human aptitude and an instinct for business.

It cannot be an accident that the more junior (but still very grown up) of the two qualifications referred to above has a capital ‘P’ for ‘Proficiency’ at its centre. Most firms abandon the word ‘insolvency’ in the title of the departments that undertake this line of their business and replace it with ‘Restructuring’, meaning to re-assess, adjust and reassume. The word ‘insolvency’ defines this profession about as much as the hole defines a ring donut.

Being adept with humans, great with numbers and intuitive with business are the three key skills you will need to really enjoy your career in this field.

So how do you pursue your ambitions in this line of work? Your best entry point is the Insolvency Practitioners’ Association’s exam, the CPI, although the ICAEW offers a version that you may feel dovetails better with your existing career path (and it is a brilliant brand). This exam is sometimes called the ‘CII’ and can be taken throughout the year, as its exams are desk-top based and multiple choice.

The CPI exam happens twice a year, in June and December, is tested by way of a combination of multiplechoice, short-form and 15-mark written test questions and covers all areas of corporate and personal insolvency. You can opt for corporate or personal only options of the paper (under the brainfusing ‘CPPI’ and ‘CPCI’ acronyms) and much depends upon what it is

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you want the qualification to do for you. Is it to set you up in the profession with roundedall-subjectknowledge, or home in on the specific area in which you wish to practise? Either way, it is a terrific and well-thought-of qualification.

The ‘Joint Board’ happens once a year, comes replete with its own ill-earned mythology and is a great challenge for those with imagination and fortitude. Those who wish to ultimately become licensed ‘insolvency practitioners’ (to carry on work in administrations, liquidations, voluntary arrangements and/or bankruptcies) and who want to respect a worthy examining opponent are made for the JIEB. It is an exam worthy of the profession that has matured over the years like a fine wine. It is, at once, fair and demanding, time-consuming and NQ worthwhile.

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● At Neil Taylor Insolvency we are flexible, creative and significantly cheaper than any other provider of insolvency tuition. Visit us at www.ntinsolvency.com or call on 01962 772 181.

NQ Magazine March 2014

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YOUR CAREER

NQ Magazine March 2014

15

THE BUSINESS WORLD

What goes around, comes around The numbers don’t add up, says Dr Steve Priddy, who is concerned by some recent share prices

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very good friend of mine is a serial entrepreneur. He has done well in a series of ventures in technology, data protection and low carbon technologies as well as more down-to-earth activities such as boat building. What drives him, he says, is novelty, the opportunities arising from new, innovative ideas put into the marketplace. In this sense, I am like him. Students of mine researching at the cutting edge of business and finance in topics as diverse as big data and ethics, or future thinking in FTSE 100 corporations, gets me springing out of bed in the morning.

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The opposite, revisiting old prejudices and misconceptions, makes me yawn.

But sometimes, dear reader, it is our duty to bear witness and to bore you with basic lessons learned.

In late 1999, early 2000, I was given the business plan for a dotcom start up to review with a view to funding.

The idea was to develop a digital catalogue of construction elements and components – everything from windows to manholes to staircases. The target customer would be contractors, developers, architects and engineers.

The plan’s financials were what made me sit up and take notice. The plan

forecast that within three years the product would be turning over £50 million while providing employment for 50 people. Good, simple numbers.

The only problem was their complete divorce from reality. At that time I was finance director for a business with equally good and simple numbers – a mature business turning over £50 million, but providing jobs for 500 people. We threw the plan in the bin, and months later dot-communism cratered.

In 2014, we seem to be back to the same place. The Weekend FT (18/19 January 2014), in a story suitably

NQ Magazine March 2014

THE BUSINESS WORLD titled ‘Is this nuts?’, focused on three companies – Twitter, Asos and Ocado.

Twitter, the journalist noted, trading at $73.30 at the end of 2013, implied a market value of $40 billion, which is 40 times 2014 revenues or an eyewatering 1,000 times potential profits.

The fact that forecasters predict a 12-month price range of $20 to $70 suggests that perhaps no one knows how to value the company. And the recent 15% downward lurch in share price on the back of figures suggesting they are not growing as fast as Facebook (isn’t this comparing apples with pears?) only reinforces the fragility of market confidence in the stock. As for Asos, the online fashion retailer, despite applying 10 different valuation models one key analyst could not justify a share price that had grown 150% over 12 months. She chose to raise her target within sight of market price and recommend ‘sell’. The result? A slight fall for 48 hours then an inexorable rise from 4862p to 7100p. And Ocado, the mumsnet favourite UK online grocery business, became transformed via its tie up with Morrison’s supermarket from an old school grocer to bestin-class technology platform; now its

NQ Magazine March 2014

shares trade at a premium to the sector of 500% to 1,000%.

All of this should have prepared me for the next moment of market insanity: the forthcoming IPO of the household appliances online supplier, AO. Now the great thing about AO is that it does appear to be dealing in something tangible and mundane – washing machines, refrigerators, microwaves and other stuff of everyday life. It started out in a no-nonsense town – Bolton – in 2000. But yet again the numbers betray the reality.

Analysts put the value of the IPO at between £800 million and £1.4 billion, rather a wide range, wouldn’t you say?

Even more worrying, this compares to a valuation of £300 million when the business was valued late last year. You may wonder what tumultuous event, other than atrocious weather, occurred over that period. And the metric which every irresponsible entrepreneur uses – earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) – throws up some truly terrifying valuations. For example Next, that well-managed retailer on every UK high street, currently trades at a multiple of 10 times EBITDA. Depending on your

assumptions, AO could be trading as much as 65 times!

But the market commentators reassure us that AO has something special. They have 1.4 million friends on Facebook, and they have control of the so-called ‘final mile’. I am not sure that this justifies their other beautiful numbers.

For me the coup de grace with this business model is the rationale for the IPO, which is that they wish to replicate their stunning UK success – in Germany. I will say no more. Good luck to them.

It is both dull and boring and I hate to say it, but as far as technology is concerned it is almost as if nothing has changed since the turn of the century. We are standing on the edge of a technology abyss. I do hope I am NQ wrong.

● Dr Steve Priddy is Head of Research at LSBF

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Ho wh app

WELL-BEING

Lucy Whitehall picks out the highlights of the findings CABA’s latest Wellbeing Survey

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ell-being is a subject that is increasingly being discussed across the accountancy profession, and in February CABA published its latest Wellbeing Survey, a unique insight into the lives and attitudes of chartered accountants.

The results are of especial interest to newly qualified accountants, we believe, showing trends in important areas of personal wellbeing – emotional, financial, physical, community, friends, family and careers – that could help you make decisions in the years ahead.

The results show that now, perhaps more than ever, those entering the profession need to learn to look after their personal well-being if they are to thrive. Here are some of the most interesting results from almost 1,000 people questioned.

The majority of accountants are content in their careers – with 14% ‘extremely happy’ and 49% ‘happy’.

And there’s good news to start proceedings for those who have recently qualified – 63% of accountants are pleased to be working in the profession, a slight increase from 61% a year ago. Generally, the 2014 survey shows a higher level of satisfaction in most areas of wellbeing, and this finding underlines that impression.

Financial security has increased in 18

the last year – 24% are now ‘extremely secure’ compared with 18% in the previous survey.

At the other end of the scale, however, the percentage of those who see themselves as ‘not at all secure’ has fallen by just one percentage point to 18%, indicating that some people are seeing ongoing problems.

Further positive news for NQs – a positive theme running through the Wellbeing Survey is that respondents believe that the worst of the recession is finally over and that some growth is now on the way, potentially leading to more jobs and career opportunities.

The percentage of accountants who have seen redundancies in their workplace during the last year has

remained unchanged from 12 months earlier, at 38% This reiterates that the underlying economic picture remains difficult, something that may impact on some NQs. Demand for help with unemployment has been CABA’s biggest growth area during the past 12 months, showing that there are members of the profession who are still struggling with the effects of the recession in the most fundamental sense. However, we are also pleased to report that the new services we have introduced to help these accountants have been very successful.

Those working in smaller organisations tend to be more content in their professional lives This finding is interesting reading for NQs who are deciding what kind of career they would like. Chartered accountants working in small practices tend to feel more valued, enjoy greater job security and have a more manageable workload. By contrast, 33% of those in larger organisations mention that long hours are an issue, and 49% say that their company does not have enough personnel for the current workload.

Some 32% feel stressed in their dayto-day life and 15% have taken time off work due to stress Stress is a common theme among accountants, and the 32% who report feeling stressed in their day-to-day NQ Magazine March 2014

WELL-BEING

? u o y e r py a

life is an almost identical figure to last year. What is more interesting is that the percentage who say that they have taken time off due to stress is 15% in the new survey, as opposed to just 8% previously, suggesting that the issue is having more and more of an impact in the workplace. Those signed off from work with stress has also almost doubled from 4% to 7%.

Just under half (44%) are involved in some kind of volunteer work and 52% have been so for more than 10 years.

For people just becoming accountants, one of the reasons to be NQ Magazine March 2014

proud of the profession is the time that many freely give to a wide variety of worthy causes. Asking about volunteer work for the first time, the Wellbeing Survey shows a widespread and longlasting commitment to supporting their communities. A useful resource is www.icaewvolunteers.com.

More than nine out of 10 chartered accountants feel that they have a support network that they can call upon You’ve probably got family and friends who you would call in times of need and the survey shows that 92% of accountants feel that their personal support networks are very important

to them. However, if you need further support, chartered accountants can turn to CABA – not just as an NQ, but throughout their training, career and retirement.

More information on the Wellbeing Survey can be found at www.caba.org.

NQ uk/wellbeing-survey-results.

â—? Lucy Whitehall is Wellbeing

Manager at the Chartered Accountants' Benevolent Association

19

ENTERPRISE

How to get investment: ‘angel investors’

In the first in a new series, Aaron Etingen examines the benefits angel investors can bring to your business

I

’ve just came back from Singapore, where LSBF recently opened new facilities to accommodate the fast-growing number of students and entrepreneurs who come to us to acquire new skills. It’s great to see young people going after their dreams, and whenever I have chance, I share some of my personal experience with them.

The most common questions I’m asked relate to funding and investmentseeking. Incubators, venture capital, angel investors, crowdsourcing... the choices are numerous. Raising money for SMEs and start-ups, however, is not an easy job, especially because it tends to be a rather underserved sector here in the UK. In such a competitive environment, information is your best tool. It’s similar to a treasure hunt: you need the correct map, a competent team and the right tools.

When looking for opportunities to invest their money, innovation is an angel investor’s favourite word. Eager to invest their solid capital in promising opportunities, they tend to place their bets on businesses where they see real potential for high return on investment.

As an entrepreneur you’ll need to do more than just pitch your business; you need to convince potential investors that the business will be successful.

As a high-risk investment, it is natural for investors to be cautious. In the US, for example, where the majority of funding comes from private investors, more than 50% of angels don’t get the expected return on investment.

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Although your business idea is important, the ‘people factor’ plays a massive role here. Having the right people around you is essential – they’re the ones who will take care of your day-to-day and, with it, your investors’ money. Due to the difficulty in evaluating the real potential and risks of a business, it is common practice for angels to invest in the potential of an entrepreneur, rather than the proposal itself. While some give preference to start-ups in a very early stage, others want to build upon SMEs with a successful track record. Therefore knowing what the investors are looking for is essential in this process.

Being able to demonstrate competitiveness is no doubt vital when it comes to seeking investment. At the same time, it is important to show how your business has an edge, something that makes it stand out. A useful exercise is to ask yourself from time to time whether your business competes on product, price or quality and what you are doing to achieve that.

Despite the growth of tech start-ups in the past few years, you don’t have to be the next Mark Zuckerberg in order to secure investment for your business.

An experienced investor knows when a business is worth their capital – and it can be in any industry. Smartphone apps are still very popular, but some angel investors also see great potential in fast-growing sectors such as green energy, biotechnology, services, healthcare, science, entertainment, education and e-commerce.

In practical terms, in the eyes of the investor, the biggest risk to a startup is not achieving a viable business model. Therefore, the best way to get investment is to prove that there is viability on a small scale, and that you just need the financial input in order to increase volume. Having an initial client base that demonstrates a clear demand for your product is the best way to show investors that the risk is small enough to justify the investment.

It is unquestionably much easier to build an initial client-base first than get investment.

Whatever your strategy is, make sure you are well prepared and get your numbers, facts and figures right.

The recipe to success is based on your ability to inspire confidence, reliability, passion, intelligence and integrity.

Good luck and, whatever the NQ outcome, never give up!

● Aaron Etingen is the Founder and Executive Chairman of London School of Business & Finance (LSBF)

NQ Magazine March 2014

ENTERPRISE

Aaron Etingen (third right) at the opening of LSBF’s new facilities in Singapore NQ Magazine March 2014

21

GOING IT ALONE

Taking the plunge In the first of a regular series, Heather Miller describes how she gave up the security of a well-paid office job to strike out on her own On 1 February 2014, I leapt into the unknown and launched AbleTax Compliance Services. Over the next mildly terrifying year, I will be giving you an insight into the highs and lows of setting up on your own in an already somewhat saturated market…

A CAREER THAT DELIVERS MORE ACCOUNTANTS & FINANCIAL ANALYSTS

GENERAL ACCOUNTANT

ACCOUNTANT

Peterborough, up to £33,000 + benefits

Grimsby, £competitive

Port Talbot, up to £37,000 + bonus + pension + BUPA

Travelex is the world’s leading foreign exchange specialist. It is currently recruiting for exceptional accountant to join its everexpanding team. You will be responsible for consolidated reporting, reviewing cost management reports and preparing financial statements. In addition you will pro-actively market and support the growth of the business, ensuring a high level of service is provided to all clients. Utilising your sound knowledge of UK GAAP and IFRS processes, you will have a strong team work ethic.

Ref: 2047108

A P Robinson & Co is a leading accountancy and business advisory company that continues to move from strength to strength. Due to expansion plans, they seek a technically astute accountant. Working to support the team leader with account management, you will build strong client relationships, with a focus on accounting and advisory services. With an ACA, ICAS or ACCA qualification, you will have solid experience from a professional firm and be extremely customer focused. An attractive salary and professional development opportunities are on offer. Ref: 2092112

Contact Amy Rone on amy.rone@hays.com or call 01733 347211

Contact sue.smith@hays.com, call 01472 354461 or visit www.hays.co.uk/jobs/aprobinson

Tata Steel Europe is a wholly-owned subsidiary of one of the world’s top ten steel producers.

It has chosen to centralise its high profile European finance function and UK headquarters in South Wales. As a result there are several first rate opportunities for newly qualified individuals. The company is seeking ACCA or CIMA qualified accountants, or ACA’s from one of the Big 4, with manufacturing experience being desirable. If you are seeking a rewarding career, this is an opportunity not to be missed.

Ref: 2015344 Contact Jackie Taylor on jackie.taylor@hays.com or call 01792 642042

hays.co.uk/nq

22AF-8410 NQ Magazine 10-03-2014.indd

1

11:18 NQ Magazine 25/02/2014 March 2014

GOING IT ALONE

Month 1, Febru ary 2014: I must admit it ha s been rather liber ating not being told where I need to be and when I need to be there. The downside? I have no one to tell me where I need to be and when I ne ed to be there! Motivation is the key to succ ess, so I have made a point of m eeting up with as many of my existing contacts as possible, just fo r coffee and a chat about my new venture. The re sponse has been so posit ive and I’m hearte ne d by how many of my fellow tax advisors have of fered their time, advice and insight into how to m ake my practice successfu l. When I think ba ck to some old colleagues wh o told me there wa s little point

DO: Consider your fin ancial position ca refully before you make your move. Do yo u have savings to cover you for at least six months?

Assume you will make no profit in th is time (probably true!) an d be comfortable with that.

Think about how you can make m oney outside of your us ual business activ ities.

Academic writing is well paid and su rprisingly doable if you stick within your special ism.

Contact the edito rs of industry jou rn als and ask them if they would consider let ting you write; don’t assum e that only partner s in the Big 4 can do this.

I wrote my first pi ec e for Taxation magazin e before I’d quali fied!

Get an office. Yes, it’s an additional expense, but you will get ba ck a lot more than spend.

Do not even cons ider working from ho me; the lure of daytime te levision and reor ga ni zing your Spotify playlis ts will prove too str ong.

NQ Magazine March 2014

in networking with in your own profes sion, I am so glad I didn’t lis ten.

Enthusiasm only goes so far, of co urse, and I can already hear the tumbleweed flo ating past my bank ba lance. The 15th of th e month is particularly po ignant, as this is the day on which I would us ually receive my salary into my bank accoun t. Instead, I’ve ju st transferred sufficient funds fro m my ISA into m y current account to cover my living expens es …

So what wisdom ca n I pass on to any aspiring sole traders out ther e? It’s early days, bu t here are my Top three do’s and don’ts.

DON’T: Accept work that you don’t have th e skill set for because you don’t want to turn th e client away. It will come back to bite you wh en you do a poor job and they leave anyway . This way, they will resp ect you and com e back when they do ne ed you.

Be afraid to toot your own horn. If you don’t tell the client how awesome you are, no one else is going to. Do n’t be arrogant ab ou t it (e.g. “I’m the be st adviser in the loc al area”), but do m ake a point of drop ping in your successes (e .g. “I had a great year last year, what with m y award nominat ion…”).

Get a room in an office. It may be appealing to have your own front door, but yo u will be bored senseless.

Rent a desk in a sh ared office space; it’s cheaper, you will m ee t some interesting people who could als o be potential clien ts. Plus it’s fun. W e have a ‘Gin Fridge’ that we raid every Frid ay afternoon.

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Your jobs board I need to find pqjobs.co.uk now!

PQ jobs pqjobs.co.uk